Alexander D. Goode
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| Alexander D. Goode | |
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| May 10, 1911 – February 3, 1943 (aged 31) | |
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| Place of birth | Columbus, Ohio |
| Place of death | USAT Dorchester, Atlantic Ocean |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1942 to 1943 |
| Rank | Chaplain lieutenant |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Chaplain's Medal for Heroism · Distinguished Service Cross · Purple Heart |
Alexander D. Goode (May 10, 1911 – February 3, 1943) was a rabbi and a lieutenant in the United States Army. He was one of the Four Chaplains who gave their lives to save other soldiers during the sinking of the USAT Dorchester during World War II
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[edit] Life
Born in 1911, one of four children to a Brooklyn rabbi, Goode excelled at sports at high school in Washington D.C. He became a rabbi after graduating from the University of Cincinnati and in 1937 Hebrew Union College. In 1940 he received his Ph.D from Johns Hopkins University. He was married in 1935 to Teresa Flax, niece of Al Jolson, with whom he had one daughter, Rosalie.
Goode served as a rabbi in Marion, Indiana and York, Pennsylvania.
In 1941, he applied to become a Navy chaplain but was turned down. The following year he was accepted into the Army, being posted to Harvard where he studied at the chaplain's school in preparation for deployment to Europe followed by brief service at an airbase in Goldsboro, North Carolina. In October 1942 he joined the other members of the Four Chaplains and was detailed to embark on the Dorchester a few months later.
[edit] Death
In late 1942, Goode was transferred to Camp Myles Standish in Taunton, Massachusetts and attended Chaplains School at Harvard University. There he met fellow chaplains George L. Fox, Clark V. Poling and John P. Washington. In January 1943, the chaplains embarked on board the USAT Dorchester, which was transporting over 900 soldiers to the United Kingdom via Greenland.
On February 2, 1943 the German submarine U-223 spotted the convoy on the move and closed with the ships, firing a torpedo which struck the Dorchester shortly after midnight. Hundreds of men packed the decks of the rapidly sinking ship and scrambled for the lifeboats. Several of the lifeboats had been damaged and the four chaplains began to organize frightened soldiers. They distributed life jackets from a locker; when the supply of life jackets ran out, each of the chaplains gave theirs to other soldiers. When the last lifeboats were away, the chaplains prayed with those unable to escape the sinking ship. 27 minutes after the torpedo struck, the Dorchester disappeared below the waves with 672 men still aboard. The last anyone saw of the four chaplains, they were standing on the deck, arms linked and praying together.[1]
[edit] Remembrance
The four chaplains were all awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Purple Heart and received national acclaim for their courage and self-sacrifice. A chapel in their honor was dedicated on February 3, 1951 by President Harry S. Truman at Grace Baptist Church in Philadelphia. In 1961 the Chaplain's Medal for Heroism was commissioned specifically for these four officers.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ a b The Saga of the Four Chaplains. The Four Chaplains Memorial Foundation. Retrieved on 2008-02-05.
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Goode, Alexander D. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | US army chaplain killed in action |
| DATE OF BIRTH | May 10, 1911 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Brooklyn, New York |
| DATE OF DEATH | 3 February 1943 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | USAT Dorchester, Atlantic Ocean |
